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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. wind — moving air
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. firm — decided
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. fork — in a road
  9. spring — of water
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. spring — the season
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. spring — a coil
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. fine — high quality
  20. firm — steady
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. firm — a company
  23. fine — all right
  24. snap — to click

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com